The bandages come off later in the morning.
Izuku stands in front of a mirror, staring at his reflection. His long curls are unkempt and greasy- he hasn't been able to take a proper shower in three days. Most of the other changes are minimal; the skin under his eyes is a little darker and he looks a bit pale, probably the result of not being able to eat much lately due to either being in too much pain or simply unconscious.
Of course, he's not paying any attention to those changes. Instead, his eyes are locked on his throat.
It's… an ugly scar, to say the least. His skin has been replaced by a messy web of scar tissue, taut and almost waxy-looking as it stretches across the column of his throat. The flushed, sprawling lines are slightly elevated and criss-cross in an angry mess of tissue. There's also a smaller patch on the left side of his neck where Shigaraki's thumb was.
It's hideous and disgusting to look at and makes Izuku's stomach churn with nausea.
The nurse that removed his bandages smiles at him encouragingly- pityingly- and turns away to toss them in the trash. His hand grabs her sleeve.
"Can I keep them?" He frantically types into his phone. The nurse frowns. "Can you put them back on?"
She glances at the bandages, then at him before realization lights her eyes. "Oh! Oh…" There's that sad smile again. "Of course. Let me just get you some fresh ones."
He feels a bit better once his neck is wrapped up again. He doesn't want anyone seeing that, especially not his mother. She's always been a crier, but the waterworks have been on a whole new level these past few days. He doesn't want to give her anything else to cry about.
After another smoothie lunch (he's going to be on a liquid diet for a while, until his delicate throat muscles stop aching so much) Doctor Nishida discharges him from the hospital. There's really not much else they can do for him. Recovery Girl's quirk took care of the worst of the damage, now all there's left for him to do is slowly recover from the trauma. In the meantime, he's already been set up with a speech therapist that he's going to be meeting with twice a week for the next few months.
It's going to be an agonizingly slow healing process, and it will be a long time before his voice is completely back to normal, but he tries not to let it get him down. He's tired of being upset. Today he finally gets to go home! He's going to make the best of it!
After thanking Doctor Nishida profusely for everything he's done, Inko and Izuku make their way down to the lobby. It feels so good to be out of a hospital gown and in his own clothes again. Inko even brought him his favorite All Might shirt to wear!
Unfortunately, he was not informed that said hero would be meeting him in the lobby.
"What a lovely shirt," All Might says, lip twitching as he struggles not to laugh.
Inko smiles. "Oh, it's his favorite one. He wears it to bed all the time." She tilts her head in confusion when she sees the deep red flush on her son's face. "Izuku? Are you feeling alright, sweetie?"
Izuku nods hastily, head ducked in embarrassment. All Might finally lets out a little laugh and ruffles his hair gently. Inko glances between them curiously.
"I feel bad that I haven't had the chance to get to know you better, Toshinori-san," she says, "Afterall, you helped my son get into UA through recommendations. And you've been so helpful and kind to me these past few days…"
Izuku blinks, eyeing All Might. He has?
"Would you like to get coffee together sometime?" Inko asks.
All Might looks a little startled. "Oh, of-of course. If you don't mind." He smiles, but Izuku notices the slight rosy flush to his cheeks.
He glances between them in bewilderment.
Wait.
What the hell happened while he was unconscious?
"Ah, there you all are." Recovery Girl catches their attention when she approaches. The older woman looks Izuku up and down, pleased. "Are you excited to go home, Midoriya-kun?"
Choosing to ignore the strange moment, Izuku turns to her and nods, smiling brightly.
"Good. Let's get you to your car, then." Recovery Girl begins leading the way to the exit. Mirth dances in her eyes. "Nice shirt, by the way."
Izuku stifles a sigh. He isn't quite sure why she feels the need to escort him to the car. He thought she would have left after she and Doctor Nishida gave him one final examination this morning. Perhaps she had some leftover paperwork to do? Or maybe it has something to do with his new protection. Will it be like it was during his internship week? Will he have a hero driving him everywhere? That would be kind of weird, although it might explain why All Might is still here too.
He's so busy lost in his thoughts that he hardly even looks up when Recovery Girl opens the door and steps aside, allowing him to exit the hospital first.
"SURPRISE!"
Izuku nearly leaps out of his skin, a soundless 'eep!' escaping his lips. All of his classmates and then some stand outside the hospital, grinning at him brightly as they cheer happily. The next thing he knows, he's being yanked into the crowd, everyone swarming around him, patting his back and ruffling his hair. He's so utterly startled and confused, but he doesn't have time to think before he's being pulled into his first of many tight hugs.
"Dude! I'm so glad you're alright!" Kirishima tearfully exclaims, crushing Izuku against his chest. "Holy shit, I'm never letting you out of my sight again!"
"Me neither!" Ashido pipes up as she hugs Izuku from behind. She rubs her cheek against his back. "I was so scared!"
"Me too, man, fuck Shigaraki!" Kaminari declares so vehemently that Izuku snorts. The electric blonde grins and starts pushing Kirishima away, whining, "Hey, come on, it's my turn to hug him!"
"What about me? I wanna hug him too!" Uraraka pops up out of nowhere.
"I'm not done yet!" Kirishima growls playfully, tightening his hold on Izuku. Uraraka pouts.
"Can I get a hug too?"
"Hey, I want one!"
"Don't hog him to yourselves!"
"Pass him around!"
"Midoriya-kun! It's so good to see you!"
"I've missed you, man!"
"I'm so glad you're okay!"
Overwhelmed, Izuku lets himself be passed from classmate to classmate, each one hugging him tightly and expressing their immense relief. He's never been so simultaneously surprised, confused, and happy before in his life. How are they all here? Don't they have school?
A hand suddenly grabs his arm, pulling him out of a hug from Yaoyorozu and Jirou.
"Oi, oi, quit glomping him, you fucking leeches!"
He can recognize that rough growl anywhere.
Face splitting into a blinding grin, Izuku turns around and proceeds to glomp Kacchan. His friend grunts under his weight, but hugs back no less tightly.
"Sorry 'bout the ambush," Kacchan grumbles in his ear, "It was just gonna be me and my old hag, but I made the mistake of telling Shitty Hair about it. Guy can't keep his fucking mouth shut to save his life."
"Hey!" Kirishima shouts somewhere behind him.
"You're lucky it's only these guys," Kacchan huffs, "It took ages to convince those class B fuckers not to come too."
Izuku desperately wants to say something, to tell him not to worry about it because this is perfect, this is so much better than anything he could have imagined. Dumb happy tears are pricking his eyes and making his vision blurry.
Somehow, it gets even better.
"Hey, hey, hey! Senpais coming through!" Mirio's cheerful voice calls out, "Move it, kiddies! I'd phase through you, but I don't think Midoriya-kun would appreciate seeing me naked right now."
"Oh God, please no," Tamaki groans lowly.
Izuku looks up to see the two boys plus Nejire pushing their way through the crowd. Well, more like Mirio pushes while Tamaki and Nejire take advantage of the path he's made with his large body. When they reach him, Nejire unabashedly pushes Kacchan away- he screeches like a rabid cat - and squeezes Izuku tightly.
"My baby!" She coos, rubbing her cheek against his. Her hair tickles his nose and makes him sneeze.
A big hand ruffles his curls. "How are you doing, my little kouhai?" Mirio beams. "I've missed you!"
He's only been gone for three days.
"Hey, you!" Nejire grabs his face, making him pay attention to her again. "Never scare me like that again! I nearly peed my pants when we heard what happened! Tamaki-kun actually did."
A few people around them snort while Tamaki looks like he wants the earth to swallow him whole.
"Plus," Nejire adds, "I just wanted to let you know that I will be personally chasing down Shigaraki and cutting off his testicles and feeding them to him for daring to lay a hand on my precious kouhai." She smiles innocently and squeezes him in a hug again.
A few of the boys shift uncomfortably.
"I like her!" Izuku hears Uraraka say behind him.
Mirio whines at Nejire until she finally lets him hug Izuku. Squashed against his muscly chest, Izuku glances at Tamaki helplessly. The older boy just smiles softly, a wordless expression of his own relief and happiness.
Kirishima clasps Izuku's shoulder once he's set down. "Alright, has everyone had a chance to hug Midoriya-kun?" He calls out.
"I haven't," Todoroki says, pushing his way past Iida.
To Izuku's immense surprise, Shinsou appears too. "Yeah, me neither."
How many people are here?!
Hugging Todoroki and Shinsou is a new experience for him, and neither of them seem very, ah, adept at it. It kind of just feels like hugging two tall, awkward trees. Warm trees, though. Warm and friendly trees that he's missed very much.
"How are you doing, Midoriya?" Todoroki asks.
Kirishima puts an arm around his shoulders. "Yeah, come on, Midoriya-kun, you've barely made a peep!"
"Tell us how you've been, man," Sero says, "I feel like you've been gone for ages."
"Yeah," Ashido agrees, clinging to Izuku's arm, "Three days is way too long to go without talking to our healer!"
Something in Izuku's chest cracks. His throat suddenly feels very tight, but it doesn't have anything to do with the scar tissue. He slowly glances up at his senpais, then at all his friends. They're all gazing at him affectionately, waiting for him to say something. He swallows thickly.
It's his fault they've been so stressed and worried these past few days. The least he could do is tell the truth.
Taking a deep breath, he opens his mouth and speaks.
"I… I guess I-I've been better…"
Everyone freezes. Then, their expressions slowly darken. The way their faces all crumple simultaneously would be almost comical if it wasn't so fucking tragic. He can't blame them for their reactions, though.
His voice… Can he even call it a voice anymore? It's really nothing more than a weak, raspy wheeze. He can't feel his vocal cords vibrating in his mangled throat. All he can do is move his mouth and do the best he can to make sound by pushing the air out of his lungs. It's weaker than a whisper, practically inaudible, and it's the most pathetic sound he's ever heard.
Silence fills the air.
Izuku ducks his head, tears stinging his eyes as he refuses to look at his friends.
Kirishima is the first one to speak up, his voice soft and confused. "I… I thought…" He slowly turns his wide, worried eyes to Kacchan. "Recovery Girl… didn't she…?"
Kacchan doesn't respond, jaw clenched as he gazes at Izuku with a pained expression. Izuku shrinks in on himself, feeling the weight of everyone's stares.
"Is it…" Ashido whispers, eyes watering, "Is it gone forever…?"
Izuku shakes his head just as Recovery Girl speaks up. "No, it's not." The crowd parts as she makes her way over to her apprentice's side. She pats his hand reassuringly before looking at his friends. "There's some scarring on his vocal cords, but they'll get stronger with time and therapy. His voice is just going to be a bit weak for a while."
Relief washes through the students, but there's still an uneasy silence in the air. Izuku hesitantly raises his head. Todoroki is standing in front of him, expression closed off. Izuku knows him well enough by now to know that he's keeping his face carefully blank to hide what must be a turmoil of emotions inside. Beside him, Shinsou looks sad but also strangely… resigned. His purple eyes obviously linger on Izuku's bandaged throat. Kacchan looks the same way he did a couple nights ago when he cried over him.
He's blaming himself. They all are. Whatever their expressions are, Izuku can see the bitter guilt behind their eyes as clear as day. It makes him want to cry, but his wheezy, breathless sobs sound much worse than his voice does. So instead, he forces back his tears and looks up at Mirio.
He's never seen his senpai look so crestfallen before.
But as soon as he realizes that Izuku is looking at him, Mirio plasters on a smile and straightens up. "Well, then, that's great news! Knowing Midoriya-kun, he'll probably be singing like a songbird in no time!"
Mirio's cheerful laugh is as forced as his smile, but it does the trick.
"Yeah, no one's more determined than Midoriya-kun!" Kirishima perks up.
Iida chops a hand. "Patience and persistence is the key to success!"
"Don't worry, Midoriya-kun," Yaoyorozu says, "Take as much time as you need to get better."
"Honestly, you're so smart, you probably know some secret body hack to get yourself better even faster," Kaminari jokes.
A few people let out- forced- laughs, patting Izuku's back and reassuring him. He flushes and mouths, "Thank you."
The only ones who don't say anything are Kacchan, Todoroki, Shinsou, and Tamaki. His raven-haired senpai is watching him with an odd expression, as if analyzing to see if he's really okay. Izuku's lip twitches and he gives a subtle nod. He isn't sure if he'll want to talk about the panic attack he had last night, or even if that'll be the only one, but at least he knows that if he ever needs help with stuff like that, then he can go to Tamaki. And maybe Aizawa too. He was pretty good at calming him down after his panic attack.
Taking out his phone, he types, "I'm really glad you guys are here. This is the best surprise ever. I really missed you."
Ashido reads out loud for him, then 'awws' and hugs him again. "We missed you too!"
"School isn't the same without you," Uraraka says.
"You're not coming back this week, right?" Iida asks, "You really should take some time to rest."
"Oh, he will," Recovery Girl says resolutely, giving Izuku a pointed look. Izuku glances away innocently. "Actually, he should get started on that as soon as possible, so…"
Aizawa takes the hint. "Alright brats, you've been holding the Midoriyas up long enough. Time to let them get home."
Kirishima's hand shoots up into the air. "Actually! If you don't mind, Midoriya-san…" Inko startles as Kirishima looks at her earnestly. "I'd like to escort you guys home. Midoriya-kun's my buddy, you know? I wanna make sure he gets home safe."
"I'm already going with him, idiot," Kacchan grunts.
"Wait, that's not fair!" Ashido complains, "I wanna come too!"
"How the fuck is it not fair?" Kacchan scowls. "We live in the same damn neighborhood, it makes sense for us to go together."
Todoroki steps up beside Izuku. "I'd like to see him home too, if you don't mind, Midoriya-san."
Kacchan whirls around. "Oi, fuck off, IcyHot!"
"I'd like to go as well," Tokoyami says, "None of us could keep Midoriya-kun safe at the mall, the least we could do is provide protection for him now."
His words seem to strike a bitter chord in his classmates, all of whom start chiming in with their own requests to escort Izuku home. Inko glances between them all with wide, adoring eyes, her heart swelling up with affection for the young heroes that wish to protect her son so fiercely, while Izuku ducks his head to hide his burning face.
"Aww, that's cute," Mirio says over the arguing voices of the first-years, "But let's not forget who are the ones who actually have their provisional hero licenses?"
He grins and arches a brow teasingly while numerous heads whip towards him and glare.
Arms wrap around Izuku's chest and a chin plops on his head. "Oh, yes! So why don't you leave this to your senpais, hm? Don't worry, we'll take good care of Midoriya-kun!"
She presses a quick kiss onto his curls, which makes him blush even harder. Meanwhile, nineteen hero course students burn holes into the girl with their fiery eyes. Nejire smiles shamelessly.
"Actually, none of that will be necessary," Aizawa drawls in a bored tone, "There's already a detailed security plan in action for Midoriya-kun. He doesn't need your constant protection."
"Can we still go, though?" Kirishima asks Inko, "Just to hang out, at least?"
Iida makes another chopping motion, scolding, "It's rude to invite yourself over to someone's house!"
"Oh- uh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to-"
"No, no, it's alright!" Inko insists, smiling at the class, "I really, really… appreciate it, actually. It's so nice to know that my baby has such protective friends."
The students beam while Izuku internally groans. Baby? Really?
"It's alright if a few of you come over," Inko says, "I'm sure Izuku would appreciate the company after being so bored in the hospital."
Izuku nods eagerly.
There's a bit of an argument as to who gets to go. Turns out, Aizawa did decide to use their afternoon hero lesson time to bring everyone to the hospital since it's their last class of the day- and doesn't that make Izuku's heart blossom with warmth- but, of course, some people aren't able to go to his house since they have something else to do later, so they bid Izuku goodbye, each one giving him one last hug before leaving. The remaining students bicker for a few more minutes until Aizawa gets fed up and decides for them. Uraraka, Yaoyorozu, Sero, and Shinsou are unfortunately banished from today's playdate. That leaves Kacchan, Kirishima, Kaminari, and Ashido, who will all go in Auntie Mitsuki's car, while Todoroki, Iida, Izuku, and Inko will squeeze into a car driven by Aizawa. Apparently, Izuku's new protection arrangement is pretty similar to his internship experience in that a pro hero will need to accompany him if he needs to be driven anywhere. He stifles a sigh.
As the Bakusquad- minus Sero- goes over to Auntie Mitsuki's car, Izuku glances over his shoulder at his senpais.
"I'll be there in a minute," he types, waiting for Todoroki and Iida to read it before jogging over to where Mirio, Tamaki, and Nejire are standing a few feet away. He isn't quite sure how they got out of class, but he won't question it.
Mirio smiles as he approaches and pulls him into a hug. It's longer than their last one, now that there's not a crowd of restless teenagers to disturb them. Izuku sighs contentedly, snuggling against Mirio's chest. Despite being very muscular, the taller boy is surprisingly very comfortable to cuddle.
When they pull away, Mirio's smile turns just a little bit sadder, eyes softening as he gazes down at him. His hand moves to Izuku's shoulder, carefully lingering near his bandaged neck. After a moment, he says quietly, "I'm sorry about your voice, Midoriya-kun. This should never have happened to someone like you."
Izuku stares up at him, then lowers his eyes. His smile fades away. For some reason that escapes him, he doesn't really feel like he has to keep up the facade around his senpais. With his classmates, he feels a certain pressure to act like he's okay, to try and make them not worry about him anymore in order to lessen the guilt that claws at his heart- and theirs. But it's different with his senpais. Tamaki has already seen him at his worst, and they all worked together, took time out of their day, just to make him feel better. It just feels… safer with them. Not that he doesn't feel safe around his classmates! But it's different. He doesn't really know how or why, but it just is.
"If… If you ever need anyone to talk to…" Tamaki trails off.
Nejire wrinkles her nose and nudges him. "Weren't you paying attention, you dumdum? He can't talk."
Tamaki's eyes widen in horror. "Oh, no- I-I'm so sorry, I didn't mean-" He flails his arms as he sputters, but Izuku catches his wrist, making him shut up. The greenette smiles exasperatedly as if to say 'dude, chill, I get it, you're fine'. Tamaki flushes and nods, dropping his gaze. "Er, well, um, yeah," he coughs.
"And I meant what I said about Shigaraki." Nejire looks at him seriously, eyes flashing as she vows, "I'll neuter him like a fucking puppy."
"Nejire-kun!" Mirio gasps, slapping his hands over Izuku's ears. Izuku rolls his eyes and pushes them off. Mirio grins and squeezes his hands once before nudging him away. "Go on, then, Aizawa-sensei's getting impatient."
Smiling, Izuku turns and starts trotting back to the car where Aizawa, Inko, Todoroki, and Iida wait for him.
"Have a fun day with your friends, sweetie!" Nejire obnoxiously calls out behind him.
"And remember to text us when you get home!" Mirio adds before the two start giggling like idiots.
Izuku groans very loudly in his head.
Iida gazes at the upperclassmen quizzically as he approaches. "Remind me, Midoriya-kun, how exactly did you become friends with those third-years? I feel like they just started popping up out of nowhere."
Todoroki shrugs. "He meets a lot of people as a healer, I guess. And I think one of them was helping him out with his quirk?" He glances at Izuku, who nods in confirmation.
"Ah," Iida hums.
"Well, if you're finally ready, then let's get going." Aizawa slides into the driver's seat. Inko gets into the front seat next to him, leaving Iida, Todoroki, and Izuku to squeeze together in the back.
While Todoroki opens the door for him, Izuku glances over his shoulder. He didn't really get to say goodbye to Recovery Girl or All Might. His mentor is still standing in front of the hospital, idly chatting with one of the nurses. All Might, however, has moved to stand beside Mirio, who is noticeably sans Tamaki and Nejire. The hero has a hand on his future successor's shoulder as he mutters to him lowly. As if sensing Izuku's gaze, All Might glances up and sends him a sincere smile when their eyes meet.
"Midoriya?" Todoroki questions.
Izuku startles and climbs into the car, taking the middle seat so Todoroki can slide him after him. The ride back home takes about twenty minutes. Iida does most of the talking, although Izuku notices that Todoroki is making a bit more of an effort than usual to converse, probably to take some of the pressure off of Iida. Since he's sitting in between the two boys, it's easy for them to see what he types on his phone. Having a conversation that's half talking, half typing is definitely strange, but he supposes he'll have to get used to it for now.
Aizawa doesn't stay for very long once they get home, departing with a polite nod to Inko and a pat on the head to Izuku. As soon as the boy steps inside his house, he's immediately knocked backwards by Sushi, who cannonballs into his chest. Thankfully, Todoroki catches him before he hits the ground.
"Is that a cat?" Todoroki asks, bewildered, as he pushes Izuku back to his feet.
"No way, it's too big to be a cat," Kirishima says.
Sushi starts purring loudly as he aggressively nuzzles Izuku, who sneezes when he gets fur in his nose.
"Holy shit, it is a cat!" Kaminari exclaims.
Kacchan huffs. "That's debatable."
He shoulders past Todoroki to walk inside, Sushi giving him a customary hiss as he passes by. Kacchan snarls back and dodges the paw that swipes at him. Izuku smiles and nuzzles Sushi. He really missed this cat.
Iida frowns. "It doesn't seem very fond of you, Bakugou-kun."
"Fucking little shit hates everyone that's not Zuku!" Kacchan snaps back, already making his way to the couch.
The rest of Izuku's friends turn to look at the cat in his arms. Surprisingly, Todoroki is the first one to be brave enough to reach out. Sushi sniffs the offered hand gingerly for a few moments, then turns away in disinterest. Todoroki blinks.
"Well," Ashido says, "It didn't hiss at you." She reaches out to pet Sushi, only to yelp and retract her hand when the cat angrily swipes at it. "Hey!" Kaminari and Kirishima burst into obnoxious laughter and she rolls her eyes. "Oh, shut up!"
Izuku gives her an apologetic look and shoos Sushi back into the house. As they walk in, however, he definitely does not miss the small, pleased smile on Todoroki's face.
The remnants of the Bakusquad immediately make themselves at home in the living room, getting comfy on the couch while Iida and Todoroki are a bit more mannerly. It's a little crowded with so many of his friends in the house, but Inko decides to make an occasion out of it and invites Auntie Mitsuki and Uncle Masaru over, although the adults mostly just stick to the kitchen. While he's eager to hang out with his friends, Izuku is also looking forward to taking a proper shower for the first time in three days. He manages to convince Kacchan to keep the others entertained while he's busy.
The shower helps a lot. It kind of feels like he's washing away the remains of the incident. The hot water feels… strange against his scarred neck. Not painful, but definitely different. Of course, he has to take his bandages off in order to shower, so when he steps out he once again catches sight of his scar in the mirror. For a few moments, he simply stares at his reflection. He doesn't think he'll ever get used to seeing his throat like this. It doesn't matter how many showers he takes or how hard he scrubs, nothing will ever get rid of this constant reminder.
He makes sure his scar is completely hidden by the bandages before he walks out of the bathroom.
Unsurprisingly, Kacchan has decided that the best way to entertain their friends is to dominate them in video games. He, Kirishima, and Kaminari are in an intense game of Mario Kart when Izuku rejoins them. Seeing his still-damp curls, Ashido immediately perks up and demands to let her play with his hair. So, he ends up seated with her on the couch, watching Kacchan become increasingly more and more competitive while Ashido brushes out his curls with a wet-comb.
Todoroki and Iida sit on opposite ends of the couch, both looking a mix between confused and judgemental as their friends continue to play.
"I don't understand," Iida says, "Is this based off of a movie or book series of some sort? Who are these characters?"
"Oh, come on, Iida-kun." Ashido rolls her eyes as she brushes out a particularly stubborn knot. "Don't act like you've never heard of Mario before."
"Well, I have, of course, I just…" Iida looks away, cheeks tinged pink. "I've never played it before."
Izuku isn't surprised. Iida doesn't seem like the gaming type. Neither does Todoroki, although his lack of experience might be more due to his… restrained upbringing rather than a lack of interest.
Kirishima, being the wonderful friend he is, offers to teach Iida how to play. He forces Kacchan to sit out this round since the blond will absolutely not go easy on either of them even if it's a training round. Kacchan huffily plops himself down in the small spot between Todoroki and Izuku on the couch, unashamedly making them both have to wiggle away from him to make space.
"The fuck are you doing to his hair, Raccoon Eyes?" Kacchan barks.
Ashido, who has long since patted Izuku's curls dry, replies simply, "I'm braiding it. Duh." She runs her fingers along a curl and sighs longingly. "Your hair is so pretty, Midori-kun. Mine gets so weird when I grow it out. You should wear it down more often."
Todoroki has been quietly watching Ashido as she expertly pulls Izuku's hair into an increasingly more and more intricate hairstyle. After a pause, he says, "I like it." Izuku glances at him in surprise. Todoroki looks away and coughs, "When it's down, I mean."
"You don't like my braids?" Ashido pouts.
"I like that too…" Todoroki adds awkwardly.
Rolling his eyes, Kacchan grumbles something under his breath that Izuku doesn't quite catch. Todoroki, however, does, and proceeds to give Kacchan a not-so-subtle dirty look.
"Takes one to know one," he retorts.
Kacchan's eyes widen comically before he turns and pounces on Todoroki with a screech. "I'LL KILL YOU, FUCKER!"
Izuku jumps to his feet the same time Kirishima does. "Whoa, whoa! What's going on, guys?!"
The redhead dives forward, trying to separate the two scuffling boys. Kaminari and Iida get up to help too. Meanwhile, Ashido remains perched on the couch, watching the scene with an unimpressed gaze.
"Eh, come on, Midori-kun," she says, unconcerned, trying to tug Izuku back to the couch, "Leave those idiots to it."
Todoroki and Kacchan tumble off the couch with a loud thump, the latter pinning the former to the ground. Kirishima manages to wrap his arms around Kacchan's shoulders and haul him off of Todoroki, Kaminari bravely fending off his flailing legs. Meanwhile, Izuku and Iida help a significantly more rumpled-looking Todoroki to his feet.
"What did you say to him?" Iida asks.
Todoroki doesn't reply and instead shrugs them off. Straightening up, he looks across the room where Kirishima and Kaminari are still struggling to wrangle a furious Kacchan.
"Bakugou," Todoroki says, voice flat. Kacchan stops thrashing and fixes him with a heated glare. Todoroki doesn't even bat an eye. "Let's play."
Kacchan's eyes narrow. "You're on, fuckface!"
"Huh?" Kirishima blinks in surprise as the two boys move towards the TV. "Wait, but I was in the middle of teaching Iida-kun how to play!"
Kacchan and Todoroki ignore him, each picking up a remote and sitting down on the ground. Kaminari swallows. "Uh, is- is this a good idea?"
Iida tilts his head. "I suppose it's better than them fighting."
A hand wraps around Izuku's elbow, pulling him back down to the couch. Ashido goes back to working on his hair, sighing exasperatedly, "Boys."
Thoroughly confused, Izuku watches as Kacchan picks Bowser- as usual- and Todoroki picks… Toad? He isn't sure if Todoroki picked him because he's actually familiar with the character or if it's because of the… slight resemblance. He almost wants to laugh, but the tension in the air prevents him from doing so.
This clearly isn't just a game. Whatever is going on between Kacchan and Todoroki, this match seems to be just an outlet they can take their feelings out on. Which, yeah, it's better than physically fighting each other, but it makes Izuku a little nervous. And sad. He thought they'd be okay with each other after the final exams. He thought they'd had their life-changing bonding moment and were ready to be friends. Granted, it hasn't even been a week since the exams, but still.
The competition between Todoroki and Kacchan is fierce, the former being surprisingly good at this game. Whether it be from skill or pure stubborn spirit, the world may never know. His face remains impassive the whole time, but Izuku can see the intense concentration in the crease in his brow and the press of his lips. Kacchan, meanwhile, screeches and snarls at every attack the other boy sends his way. He nearly pounces on Todoroki again when the latter hits him with a blue shell, but Kirishima stops him.
Izuku almost doesn't want to see how this will end. If Kacchan wins, he'll no doubt become insufferable from his already inflated ego. However, if Todoroki wins, then that'll only rub salt in the wound of Kacchan's raging insecurities, especially when it comes to the heterochromatic boy.
"I lost to him. I keep losing to him. He's… He's stronger than me. He'd be a better hero for you. He'd keep you safe…"
Yeah, Izuku doesn't really want to deal with that right now.
Thankfully, Izuku's savior comes in the form of his cat. As Todoroki and Kacchan start closing in on the finish line, Sushi appears out of nowhere and barrels into Kacchan, hissing and spitting. The blond shrieks, controller knocked out of his hands as the cat collides with him, the force of it making his back slam into Todoroki. With both boys down, Sushi disappears as quickly as he came. Kirishima, Kaminari, and Ashido burst out into laughter.
"What the fuck?!" Kacchan roars, jumping to his feet. Bowser and Toad both fall off the Rainbow Road. His eye twitches. "Fuck! I'm gonna kill that shitstain furball!"
"Bakugou-kun!" Iida sounds appalled. "It's a cat."
Izuku, who is also laughing, albeit in his own weird, silent way, quickly takes out his phone and starts typing. Ashido waves her hand to get everyone's attention. "Ooh, ooh, Midori-kun's typing something!"
"What?!" Kacchan snaps.
Ashido reads over Izuku's shoulder and snickers, "He says, 'It's your own fault for sitting within Sushi's attack range. You should know better than to sit on the floor by now, Kacchan!'" She grins wickedly. "Oh my God, please tell me this cat's been tormenting him for years!"
Izuku nods and she dissolves into peals of laughter.
"Fuck you, Raccoon Eyes!" Kacchan whirls around to glare at Todoroki, who is still sitting cross-legged on the floor. "We're doing a fucking rematch!"
Todoroki tilts his head in consideration, then shrugs. "Nah. It was kind of boring. Besides." He stands up and brushes past Kacchan. "I was winning anyway."
Izuku nearly facepalms.
Kirishima and Kaminari just barely manage to stop Kacchan from murdering Todoroki right then and there on the spot. Izuku stares at Todoroki incredulously as the taller boy impassively makes his way over to the couch and sits down beside him. After a moment, Todoroki realizes he's being stared at and glances over.
"What?"
Sighing, Izuku types, "Must you provoke him?"
Todoroki blinks. "It's friendly banter."
Izuku glances at Kacchan, who is still struggling against Kirishima and Kaminari as he shouts profanities at Todoroki. He glances back at Todoroki, who looks thoroughly unbothered by all of this. Then he glances behind him at Ashido, who has already finished with his hair but is still sitting behind him for some reason. Rolling his eyes, he whispers to her exasperatedly, "Boys."
She smirks. "Finally, someone who understands."
Thankfully, the next couple of hours go by with a significant less amount of violence. Now that Ashido has relinquished her grasp on Izuku, he's able to play a few rounds himself, helping Kirishima finish teaching Iida how to play. Iida, obviously, isn't very good since he's a beginner, so the competition really ends up being between Izuku and Kirishima. Izuku makes sure to use enough dirty moves to piss Kirishima off enough to erase any thoughts of letting him win out of pity- and proceeds to beat the redhead with his superior skill. Kirishima wails in defeat while Izuku shamelessly gloats. They start spicing things up with 1v1s and he goes a few rounds, beating Iida three more times, Kaminari twice, Kacchan once, then losing to Kacchan twice, Kirishima and Ashido each once before he starts to get a bit tired.
He knows it's only natural to have less energy after healing from such a traumatic injury, so he tries not to be too bitter about it as he passes his remote off to Ashido. Iida and Todoroki have long since stopped playing, deciding that gaming isn't exactly their scene, and are simply watching their friends play as they sit together on the couch. Izuku goes over and immediately makes himself comfortable as he curls up between his two much calmer friends. His socked feet end up pressed against Iida's thigh and his cheek is squished against Todoroki's shoulder. He's well aware that neither of the boys are well-versed in the art of cuddling, but he can only bite back an amused smirk when they both not-so-subtly stiffen up beside him.
The trio silently watch as Ashido and Kaminari bicker over which course to pick for the round. Kacchan is sitting nearby, looking pissed off as usual, but for once he's not the one arguing. Izuku is immensely grateful for the frankly impressive level of control Kirishima has over his childhood friend.
Beside him, Todoroki shifts. For a moment, Izuku thinks he's trying to get away and presses closer, the warmth from his left side feeling heavenly. He can't see the boy's face, but he can see his jaw turning towards him.
"Midoriya," Todoroki says quietly.
His voice has a strangely serious tone to it, devoid of any of the light energy in the atmosphere. Izuku forgets himself for a moment and tries to hum in response, then remembers and nods instead.
Todoroki hesitates. "I… I didn't get to say this earlier, but… I'm sorry. For not being there."
Izuku blinks and pulls back to look at his face. Todoroki glances away for a brief moment, then forces himself to meet his gaze. "I just can't help thinking… If I had gone with you guys, if I had been there, then maybe you wouldn't have gotten hurt…"
Izuku is already shaking his head rapidly. "Don't," he whispers, barely audible, "Please… stop… do-don't feel gui… guilty…"
"We all are."
Izuku glances behind him to see Iida looking somber. He didn't realize he'd heard…
The blue-haired boy gazes down at the couch with a tight expression, fists clenched. "We're supposed to be heroes," he bites out, "And we couldn't even protect our own healer. You've always worked hard to keep us safe and we couldn't do the same for you. It-" He cuts himself off, looking up at Izuku briefly before averting his gaze, lips pressed. "It's not something that can be so easily brushed off."
The rest of their friends have stopped bickering by now. The video game music plays on in the background, but nobody pays attention. Instead, they're all wearing their own dark, grim expressions, the overwhelming guilt that's so poorly hidden in their eyes making Izuku's heart clench painfully.
No, no, come on, they were just having fun! What happened? He almost resents Todoroki for bringing this up.
"-ey," he wheezes, "D-Don't-"
"Damn it!" Kirishima hisses, startling him.
"Kiri…"
"How can you not see how much of a failure this was for us?!" The redhead glares at him with frustrated, shiny eyes. He lets out a bark of humorless laughter, "You should be mad at us, honestly. We spend all this time doing all this training and yet a villain was still able to snatch you right from under our noses! It's our fault you got so hurt."
Izuku stares at him, feeling like he's going to be sick. His usually cheerful friend is wiping angry tears from his eyes, shoulders hunched in defeat. Beside him, Kacchan is glowering at the ground, jaw clenched and muscles as tight as a bowstring.
"That fucker got you while you were with me."
Izuku realizes now that Kirishima is probably feeling as horrible and guilty as Kacchan is. He was the only other one that was as close as the blond was when Izuku was taken.
Izuku doesn't know what to do. Part of him wants to apologize, but that might just make it worse. He knows how annoyed he is with people apologizing to him, so he imagines his friends wouldn't appreciate it if he apologized to them, especially if they feel they're the ones at fault.
He opens his mouth to speak, then closes it. Instead, he types, "I'm not mad. I don't blame anyone but Shigaraki."
Todoroki reads for him, voice blank and hollow. A tense silence follows, only broken by the murmuring voices of the adults in the kitchen.
Then, Ashido uncrosses her legs and stands up, making her way over to the couch and squeezing between him and Iida.
"I just wanna let you know," she says as she wraps her arms around him, "That we're gonna be super annoying and overprotective from now on."
"Oh, definitely!" Kaminari immediately says, smiling a bit, but it doesn't really reach his eyes.
For once, Kacchan agrees with them. "Yeah, so don't fucking complain about it, dumbass," he snaps.
"We're never going to let you get hurt again," Todoroki promises. Iida and Kirishima nod.
Izuku has half a mind to remind them that he's already going to be having a bunch of pro heroes looking out for him 24/7 from here on out, but… he supposes it wouldn't be too bad to indulge them. Normally, he's annoyed by over-protectiveness; he's had Kacchan hanging over his shoulder practically his entire life. But now he realizes that it's for him as much as it is for his friends. They need this too. This incident has dealt a serious blow to their self-confidence. They need a second chance to prove to themselves that they can be good heroes. He can give that to them.
So, he simply smiles and hugs Ashido back.
In the meantime, he needs to get stronger. It's his fault that they worry about him, really. He's too weak; he doesn't have a combative quirk, so he needs to make up for that with double the training. It makes sense. There's no point in telling his friends to stop worrying about him, though. He needs to show them that he can be strong too, show them that they don't have to worry about him. He wants them to be able to trust his strength so they don't worry about him so much.
Surrounded by his friends as they cuddle with him on the couch, Izuku silently vows to never make them feel guilty ever again.
A portal opens in front of him, a dark, swirling mass of purple and black tendrils. From within the mass appears a pale hand, slowly stretching out and reaching towards him. He tries to move, but he can't. His feet are frozen to the ground. Long, nimble fingers curl around his throat, holding it in a painful vice-grip.
A high-pitched laugh bubbles from the darkness.
"Didn't I tell you, little cheat code?"
Panic spikes through him as the hand drags him closer to the portal by the throat. He tries to thrash, but his body is paralyzed, he can't move!
The black tendrils are brushing against him now, the portal so close to taking him away from his life. As the hand tightens around his neck, two glowing, blood-red eyes appear in the darkness.
"My Sensei always gets what he wants."
Pain explodes in his throat.
"..uku? Zuku! ZUKU!"
Izuku wakes up with a jolt.
Crimson eyes stare down at him.
He screams soundlessly and scrambles away, kicking and punching. Somebody above him grunts in pain and he twists around, trying to escape, but there's something trapping his legs. He thrashes and tugs and pulls frantically, ignoring the shouts of 'stop!' and 'calm down!' because he needs to get away, get away, get away-
He falls off the bed.
The pain of hitting the ground stuns him long enough for Kacchan to pin him down.
"Zuku!" He barks, "Calm down! It was just a nightmare!"
Izuku gasps for air, struggling to focus his scrambled mind. The red eyes are still here, but- no, they're not Shigaraki's. These eyes- they're his best friend's eyes, they're Kacchan's. He's known them practically his entire life. The fact that he thought even for a second that they were Shigaraki's eyes-
He lets out a choked, soundless sob.
His third panic attack is different from the previous ones. Less panic, somehow, and more… sad. Sad because honestly? All of this just really fucking sucks. Not that he's just realizing this now, but it's just hitting differently in the dark of the night. Because he just woke up terrified thinking that his best friend in the whole world was the horrible villain that hurt him, and that fucking sucks.
Kacchan holds him through it, not making a single comment about the noiseless wheezes and breathy cries that are the only sounds his throat can make. In the back of his mind, the part that's not desperately clinging to Kacchan as an anchor to the real world, Izuku feels guilty. Kacchan has school tomorrow- or today, depending on the time. He should be resting, not staying up coddling Izuku. It was hard enough convincing Auntie Mitsuki to let him sleepover; the only reason she let him stay was probably because Izuku looked so pitiful-
A sharp pinch to his rear startles him out of his thoughts.
"I can hear you thinking, dumbass," Kacchan grumbles tiredly, "Shut up."
Izuku sniffles and clings to him when the blond picks him up off the ground, carrying him back to bed. He doesn't question when Kacchan joins him under the sheets, instead just being grateful as his friend tucks his head under his chin and holds him close. A silent offer of protection.
Izuku falls asleep breathing in Kacchan's burnt sugar scent.